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The Legend of Adnor and the Taijuni
by T.A. Saunders ©2012 v1.0 When great Vocor fell to destruction with the rage of Tashalasheeri, two great pieces of the moon spiraled away from the horrendous event; one sailed into the sister moon, Ishaela and thanks to the intervention of the Moon Goddess, Zorah did not shatter Ishaela as well, but settled slowly and would eventually become the home for the Dwarves and Elves. The other great mass of debris hurdled towards Imarel and might well have brought her destruction, had it not been for the intervention of Kaal, the Sun God. The destruction of Vocor was particularly wounding to him, for his chosen servants, the Vocorians and his great forge, the Nethyien had been on that moon. Yet, despite this great destruction, many Vocorians had survived, thanks in large part to their ability to merge with stone and metal. The chunk of destroyed Vocor that would become the island, Tamayr Shuryu held within it the Vocorian Titan, Adnor and it would be here he would remain for millions of years, unfound and assumed dead by his kin. While other Vocorian Titans slowly awakened on what would become the main island of Vocoria, Adnor continued to remain dormant; little is known why even by Adnor himself. It is believed he did not hear the ‘Calling’ of his brothers and sisters when they had awakened, prompting him to remain merged with the stone of Tamayr Shuryu, until a most unlikely chain of events came to pass, that would wake him. In these millions of years, Humans who had called themselves Taijuni (named after their most legendary hero, Taijun Anu), populated the island and had founded a city and a few towns and villages. Despite the savage creatures that lurked in the jungles surrounding them, the Taijuni lived in relative peace and harmony with their environment. They respected the land and took great care to not waste what they took from the ground, or hunted in the jungle. They were a frugal, industrious and wise people, who understood war, but did not crave it. In the hundreds of years the Taijuni flourished, suffered their own trials and rose beyond them, the stone whispered to Adnor and in his sleeping dreams, he came to know the Taijuni. These were good dreams and filled Adnor with a sense of peace, thinking himself with Kaal once more and thought the Taijuni new children of the Sun God’s. Through his dreams, he effected the Taijuni people in ways they could not have expected, or even realized. In these dreams, he showed their smiths where to find Vocorium and Starmetal and how to forge them into deadly weapons and tools that never broke, dulled or wore out. He showed their masons where the red Taju stone was and how to craft sturdy buildings with it and strong walls to protect their cities. It was through these dreams that the wisest of the Taijuni began to realize they could manipulate stone and flame to their will, but did not fully comprehend why. This was a golden age of prosperity for the Taijuni people and from his great sleep in the deep ground, Adnor smiled. Then, one day great ships settled on the beaches of Tamayr Shuryu and upon these ships were tall, wise people with dark skin who favored gold and silk. These dark-skinned people came to Taijun’s very gates with a great procession and talked of peace and friendship. These people called themselves the Albadosians and in their talk of peace, much discussion was made of the Taijun’s vast supply of Starmetal. Apparently, this was a very valuable metal to them and they were willing to pay in brilliant gems and strange items of magic. The Taijuni Warlord, Hidake Min considered this wealth and the greedy way the Albadosians smiled when they walked through their mines. His heart told him that treachery lurked in their hearts, with each incredible promise and each grand gesture. He shared his house, his food and the knowledge of their smiths and masons, but would not give them the Starmetal they craved. And with their smiles remaining, the Albadosians left an ambassador and returned to their ships. A year to the day the Albadosians and Taijuni met and traded, they had returned with their many vast ships and their strange smiles, but brought with them great walking beasts, called Banu and legions of soldiers wearing armor made with the knowledge of Taijuni smiths, along with dark-robed men who carried Starmetal Rods. These men, who were known as Vahtu, or Siphoners wielded powerful magic that burned their archers’ arrows with dark, living flame and turned Taijuni warriors into raving madmen that slew their kin at the behest of their dark masters. The slaughter was filled with such brutality, the very ground was saturated with the blood of the fallen and the stench of corpses carried from the beaches all the way to troubled Taijun where the Warlord struggled for a defense against this great evil. Then, as the Banu of the Albadosians came to the very gates of their city, a great rumbling was heard. Albadosian and Taijuni alike stumbled and buildings shook as a great quake began. And before the very gates of Taijun, the ground split and swallowed the entire forward army of Albadosia in a crevice of magma-spewing flame. Unprepared for this counter-offensive, the Albadosian armies scattered and their Vahtu found they were powerless against whatever thing made this volcanic crevice in the ground. Undaunted however, they regrouped and attempted to again take the city by sweeping around the crevice and towards the walls, where they had hoped to scale them or knock them down. Taijuni archers killed many that day, but the Albadosian numbers were vast, even with the loss of their forward army. When all hope seemed lost and the very last arrow shot from a bow scored its mark, a great bellowing was heard from within the lava-filled crevice. It was the voice of the great Vocorian Titan, Adnor and his insurmountable rage for the assault upon his chosen people required slaking. Towering at over five hundred feet in height, the Albadosian armies immediately panicked and fled to their ships, but Adnor would not allow them to escape. A deafening bellow was heard and following that bellow, a ball of lava shot over the fleeing army and sailed halfway across the island, where it smashed into their ships and sent them smoldering into the unforgiving sea. Trapped now, many of the Vahtu abandoned the armies and used magic to flee the oncoming doom, leaving laymen soldiers, officers, archers and beasts to die to the smashing fist, crushing foot and breath of flame of the great Titan, Adnor. In the end, there was flame and ruin before the gates of Taijun and aside of those who fled with magic ways, not one Albadosian survived. Unsure of their savior, the Taijuni looked up at Adnor with fear and awe, but to them a smile was returned and with that smile, came many more of Adnor’s blessings. To this day, the Taijuni people worship Adnor and for that worship, Adnor protects the island people from any and all invaders, while teaching them the many secrets of metal, flame and stone that Kaal had once taught him many eons ago. For this reason, the Taijuni know no other deity than Adnor and find no need to pay homage to another. It is through his blessings that Taijuni know flame and stone magic, despite the vast quanities of Starmetal in their ground, construct weapons and armor without peer and continue to live their peaceful, industrious way of life, largely unhindered. Category:Legends